Page 3 of Serpent King's Revenge

A muscle ticked in my jaw, and I pressed my lips together, fighting the urge to tell her exactly where she could shove her deal. Abby was off-limits. She had to be. Because if they dragged her into this mess, then all bets were off.

I would kill anyone who fucking touched her.

My past crimes would be nothing compared to the hell I would rain down if Abby got hurt.

"Think about it, Nathan," Diane continued, her tone softer now, as if coaxing a confession from me. "Tell me everything and I could promise you an easier life…maybe even a life away from the Serpents, where you could be with her. You could have that—if you're willing to help us."

Her words hung heavy in the air, mingling withh the stench of death that clung to my clothes since I’d left my parents’ house. But no matter what she promised or threatened, it was clear: Diane Hayes had just declared war.

And she didn't know who she was dealing with.

Diane's smirk widened. "You really care about her, don't you?"

Fuck. Abby wasn’t supposed to be leverage. But when it came to her, I couldn’t exactly keep a poker face. That much was clear.

"Where is she?" I rasped. "Is Abby in custody?"

Diane stood, her chair scraping against the floor as she snatched the necklace up. My hands jerked against the cuffs, metal biting into skin as I lunged forward.

I wanted to catch her by the throat, force out every detail about Abby's whereabouts, but the steel around my wrists held firm.

"Sit down, Nathan," Diane said, cool as ice. Her voice didn’t shake—not like mine did. She had me pinned down, all because she knew my greatest weakness. "You're not going anywhere."

I slumped back into the chair, fury boiling in my chest. The room felt smaller, the walls closing in on me. I was a caged animal, and for the first time in a long while, uncertainty gnawed at me. With Abby’s necklace off the table and back in Diane’s pocket, the only tangible proof of her existence had vanished.

"Tell me where she is," I ground out through clenched teeth, trying not to let Diane see my desperation.

"Maybe she's safe," Diane taunted, her eyes locked onto mine. "Or maybe she's just another piece of evidence against you."

I stared hard at her, every muscle tensed. But there was nothing I could do.

"Let's just say, for now, she's…unavailable," Diane finally said, a cryptic note in her voice that made my blood run cold. "And if I were you, I'd be more worried about what's going to happen next."

The door clanged shut behind her as she left, the sound echoing in the empty room. Alone with my thoughts, I felt the weight of my situation like never before. I was trapped here, powerless, while the lives of those I cared for hung in the balance. Abby, Justin, Lily, Alex—the uncertainty was a vise squeezing tighter around my heart.

I had played this game with precision, but I wasn’t in control anymore. Abby was in charge now…if she wasn’t already in police custody or dead.

I just had to hope she had control of the board.

Chapter Two: Abby

The adrenaline was wearing off…and I was so close to fainting.

But no. We had gotten away. I had to pull it together, for Nathan.

The air was thick with unspoken dread; 118 California felt empty without Nathan’s leather jacket draped over the back of a chair or the sound of his soft steps on the wood floor. I couldn’t stay here, I needed to find him–

"Abby, you're bleeding." Derek’s voice cut through my haze of pain. I looked down, realized my hand was clutching my torso.

Shit.

I hadn’t even noticed, but Derek and Justin were both watching me, eyes trained on the wound I’d stitched up hours ago…the wound that just wouldn’t stop bleeding.

"Just hold on, Abby," Justin murmured. He was rifling through the first aid kit beside me on the counter, as if he would find some magic pill to fix everything. "Lily's good at this kind of stuff, she'll stitch you up in no time.”

“You called Lily?” I asked. “Justin, I told you–”

“I had to tell her,” he insisted. “Abby, you look terrible. And besides…isn’t she safer here?"

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